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Level 4: Archives
Walkthrough This level starts off with great danger—a pressure plate in the first room seals the door behind you on your first step inside. Summoned inside are two Elder Herders, the third and final variety to be found. While slow, they can create a lingering Poison Cloud, which will cause damage and may inflict poison. Even worse, they can set it on any tile next to them, whether or not they're facing it. When fighting two in an enclosed space like this, it can be all too easy to get cornered; move quickly and often, and make sure you're doing so when they're moving between tiles and unable to attack. One of them will drop an Iron Key, which will unlock the gate onward and reopen the gate to the previous level. The path ahead leads to a room with some alchemical tools and the sounds of undead enemies. Prepare for them as you open the door, as you'll be facing two pairs of Undead Archers. This room acts as a hub for the level; each corner holds a labeled Windgate, which leads to one of four challenges. At the completion of each challenge, you will receive a Scroll. These must be placed in the appropriate pillars, completing the sentences written on each. Beast Gardens and Menagerie Upon stepping through the Windgate, you will be teleported into a small room with a spectral relay. It does not, however, open the gate; when the button is pressed, it will both activate the relay and open the gate. If the orb reaches the receptacle, the gate will then close. In order to open the gate, you must press the button and quickly block the orb's path. The next room holds Undead Soldiers, and if you try to fight them, you'll soon realize that they respawn infinitely—they are needed for the puzzle. Three pressure plates lie throughout the room, all of them blocked off by grates. Press the buttons found on nearby pillars to open them, then step inside. The plate will close the grates again, trapping you inside, but a button on the wall will reopen the grates. You'll need to lure one of the Soldiers close, then step back; in following you, it will step on the plate, ending up trapped inside. Once all three buttons are pressed down, the door in the south will open. Follow it to reach a central, pit-filled room; four paths all lead to a Scroll and a Windgate in the middle. Here, you can obtain the Scroll reading "but still dreaming". Fight the Crowerns which will likely fly across the pits to engage you, and go through the Windgate to return. The Catacomb At first glance, the room you are teleported to has very little besides an exit that passes over three pits. When you step forward, however, the pits and two walls will open. Various Undead Guards inhabit the tunnels beyond, as individuals and in pairs. Each of the pits is opened by taking weight off one of three pressure plates; two of them only require you to remove an item, but the third is weighed down by a group of four Soldiers in a cell; throw the switch to open the gate and fight the group. The third of Toorum's Notes is found in the east. Once all of the weights are removed, cross the pits and open the gate. Proceed down the path to reach the Scroll reading "to depths beyond measure". Trails of Thought A short walk forward takes you to a pressure plate in front of a door; stepping on it opens the door and activates several Windgates throughout the room in front of you. The Windgates will teleport you back to the beginning of the puzzle, forcing you to restart, and they appear and disappear from various tiles as you move between the plates. The trick is that when you step on a plate, any Windgates on the tiles around it will disappear, and Windgates will appear on the empty tiles surrounding it. You must reach the northwest corner and press the button to open the door, then navigate to the exit. Facing north, move right three times, back, left, forward, left, back, right, forward, left, and forward. At this point, you can press the button. Move right, back, left, forward, right, back, left, back, right, forward, right, and back. Fight the Crowern in the room beyond and proceed to the next puzzle. Step on the pressure plate to open the gate; this will also open the pits in the next room. Each pit has a corresponding plate, which opens or closes each time the plate is pressed. Step onto the first plate, then onto the pit, then step back onto the plate. Move to the next plate, then back onto the first plate. All three pits will be closed, allowing you to reach the alcove with the Iron Key which opens the door leading forward. Beyond it, another Undead Soldier blocks your way. Continue down to reach the Scroll reading "by his call". Time and Tide At first, all you can do is stand on a pressure plate; three clicks will sound, then a Windgate will briefly appear over one of the pits ahead. During the brief window that it appears, you need to throw an item into it; the item should land on the pressure plate ahead and to your left, closing two of the pits in front of you. Simply picking up an item and throwing it may cause it to just land next to you and not continue forward. If this is the case, try throwing an item from a character's hand; three Throwing Knives can be found to the right of the plate. By itself, the next test is not too challenging: stepping on the pressure plate will cause the pits ahead of you to close, one after another, then reopen after a short while. All you have to do is follow along, not moving too quickly and not waiting too long to move ahead. Unfortunately, a Crowern has taken up residence in the destination room, and is all too likely to be blocking your path; you can only hope that it will either wander into sight and attack while you're on solid ground, or be out of your way as you pass through. Near the end of the path, throw an item onto the pressure plate to open the gate blocking the exit. You may want to find the secret associated with this test at the same time. Move around the pillar, where you can retrieve the item you threw, and go through the door to reach the Scroll reading "but never forgiven". Note that after completing the third challenge, you will be accosted with the first appearance of Tentacles, a strange enemy that emerges between grates in the floor. Their attacks can cause paralyze your party members, so use their lack of mobility to your advantage. After all four Scrolls are obtained, place them in the pillars to complete each phrase: "Put to sleep / but still dreaming"; "Eternally imprisoned / to depths beyond measure"; "Caverns still echoing / by his call"; "Crimes forgotten / but never forgiven". Your reward is the opening of the gate blocking the stairs and Crystal of Life, but also the opening of four walls containing a new enemy—the Scavenger. On their own, they are fairly weak, but they can be overwhelming in great numbers, and there's no lack of them here. Try to hurry back to the entrance so that you can take them on one at a time and rest if you need to. Once you've cleared them out, look in the opened areas for several items and a switch that reactivates the Windgates. The isolated room in the southwest can be reached by falling down any of the three pits south of Level 3's Crystal of Life. After facing two Giant Snails, you can search around for a Skull and Tar Bead. Flip the switch to activate a Windgate leading back to the floor above. The isolated room in the west can be reached by falling down one of the pits in the same room as Level 3's Crystal of Life. As the note from Toorum indicated, you can find Leather Greaves there, guarded by a Herder. Slime Dungeon This room features a maze of grates, with Slimes wandering through the halls. Unfortunately, while you can't attack them through the grates, they have no such trouble launching their disease-inflicting goop at you. Try to lure them toward the entrance, where you can fight them without fear of surprise attacks through the walls. A button on the south wall opens a wall in the southeast corner, revealing a Green Gem. Outside of the dungeon, a demon's head is found next to a door and the inscription "Feed me". Place the Green Gem inside its mouth to open the door, revealing a cache of items. Monsters *6 Crowerns *2 Giant Snails * Herders **1 Herder **2 Elder Herders *18 Scavengers *7 Slimes *1 Tentacles *9 Undead Archers *15 Undead Soldiers (3 Respawning) Items Weapons * Battle Axe * Crossbow *2 Crossbow Quarrels * Fire Bomb * Frost Bomb *2 Poison Bombs *6 Poison Quarrels * Rock * Shuriken *3 Throwing Knives * Venom Edge Armor * Bone Amulet * Chitin Greaves * Chitin Mask * Flarefeather Cap * Leather Boots * Leather Gloves * Leather Greaves * Ring Gauntlets * Serpent Bracer Consumable & Ingredients *3 Blooddrop Blossoms *3 Burrow Rat Shanks * Cave Nettle * Grim Cap * Pitroot Bread *3 Slime Bells *5 Tar Beads Miscellaneous * 11 Torch * Book of Infinite Wisdom * Flask * Green Gem * 2 Iron Key * Gear Key * Sack * Scroll (Restore Energy) * 4 Scroll (Phrases) * Note * Scroll of Frostbolt * Scroll of Invisibility * Skull * Toorum's Note * Golden Deity Figure Secrets * Falling from one of the pits east of Level 3's Crystal of Life will cause you to land in the isolated room in the center of the map. The gate leading inside is controlled by the three pressure plates in the room; once all three have been weighed down at once, it will open permanently. You'll have to deactivate the Windgate by pressing the button on the eastern wall. Inside on a shelf is the Serpent Bracer. * Another secret is contained within the previous secret's room. With the gate opened and the secret discovered, reactivate the Windgate and step through it. You will be teleported into a room with a switch, which opens a wall leading back to the room, and an alcove holding the Scroll of Invisibility. * Placing the Green Gem in the demon head's mouth and entering the opened room counts as a secret. Inside is a Crossbow, 2 Poison Bombs, and 6 Poison Quarrels. * In Beast Gardens and Menagerie, you can find a loose rock while standing on the southeast plate. Press it to open a wall in the north containing Leather Boots, Pitroot Bread, and Ring Gauntlets. * In The Catacomb, enter the cell that the group of four Undead Soldiers inhabited. A button on the wall closes the gate behind you and opens two walls, revealing a fifth Soldier. Defeat it and go through the new tunnel to find a Bone Amulet and a Sack containing a Burrow Rat Shank, Leather Gloves, and 2 Tar Beads. * In the tunnel northeast of the above secret, search along a wall on the south side for a loose rock. Pressing it will open a wall at the end of the northernmost tunnel, releasing another group of four Soldiers. The wall will close after a short while, so you will have to press the rock again after the Soldiers are out of the way. Inside is a Fire Bomb and the Flarefeather Cap. A button on the wall allows you to exit. * In the second puzzle in Trails of Thought, search the south wall for a loose rock. This will open a wall in the previous room, giving you access to the Venom Edge. * After solving the first puzzle in Time and Tide, place an item on the pressure plate and stand on the pit where the Windgate will appear. You will be teleported behind the bars visible to the east, where you can pick up a Book of Infinite Wisdom. * During the second part of Time and Tide, as you start along the path of pits, look to your right for a button. Pressing it will open a wall farther down, behind which more pits will close to make a path. You can take the Chitin Mask from a shelf inside, and throw it onto the plate to get through unscathed. * Iron Door: After completing the second puzzle in Trails of Thought, look for a loose rock in the alcove on your right. Pressing it will temporarily close two of the pits on your left in the room up ahead; hurry to the second one and press the button on the wall. This will deactivate the central Windgate and open the pit beneath it. Jump down, and you will fall into a single-tile cell on Level 5 that can only be entered by jumping into that pit. Take the Gear Key from the alcove, open the door with the switch, and return to Level 4 through the Windgate. Use the Gear Key to open the Iron Door, which contains Chitin Greaves. Treasures * In the northeast corner of the Slime Dungeon is the Golden Deity Figure. Category:Levels